Opinion: ‘It’s time to end breast cancer’

This is personal. A close friend lost his wife only recently to breast cancer at a very young age.

This week I visited The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign event in Parliament.

Founded in 1992 with the launch of the iconic Pink Ribbon, they have raised approximately £90 million globally for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

I was introduced to their inspirational new Campaign Ambassadors who spoke to me about the importance of encouraging everyone to regularly self-check their breasts, to improve early diagnosis, especially in under-represented communities where self-checking rates are lowest. They are doing fantastic work, raising funds and awareness.

Their campaign will help inform women of all different backgrounds, cultures, and nationalities. This matters in a diverse City like Peterborough. Women should feel confident to talk about these issues and end any stigma’s around being open about their bodies and health.

Cancer is something that effects all of us in some way or another and breast cancer is sadly still a leading cause in death for women under the age of 50. However, breast cancer survival is improving. This is due to a combination of better treatment and care, earlier detection and faster diagnosis. Over the past 40 years the survival rate for breast cancer has doubled in the UK.

The pandemic put enormous strain on cancer treatment, with a sustained reduction in the number of people referred, diagnosed, and treated for cancer over the last 3 years.

As a country, we showed what we can do when we come together against a common threat during the pandemic. Our incredible vaccine roll out meant we were able to lift restrictions far quicker than any other country in Europe.

Now we must come together and apply the same grit and determination against the common threat of cancer which touches all of our lives.The government has a ten-year plan to tackle cancer backlogs. One of the main priorities is to diagnose cancer earlier. Patients diagnosed at stages 1 and 2, have a much better chance of successful treatment and long-term survival.

That is where charities such as The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign play such a vital role. Not only do they do a fantastic job in raising funds for life saving research and medical services. But they also get people talking about this important issue when they might otherwise feel uncomfortable.

Their campaign slogan is ‘Time to end breast cancer’ and the more we can encourage people to talk about their health the quicker we can identify issues earlier and achieve this. I fully support their campaign.